Hands-on with He-Man: The Most Powerful Game in the Universe

For those born in the '80s, it seemed sad that He-Man's 30th anniversary would come and go without a formal celebration.

Thankfully, the folks over at Chillingo, Mattel, and GlitchSoft got together to right this 'wrong' and create He-Man: The Most Powerful Game in the Universe.

Doubly thankfully, I got a chance to go hands-on with this mobile tap 'n' slash game, which is scheduled to debut on iOS on October 25th. Here are my findings.

While those of a certain age will undoubtedly appreciate the lengths to which the developer has gone to accurately recreate many of the familiar locations in Eternia (He-Man's fictional planet), younger gamers who missed out on the cartoon's original run should still find the backdrops suitably enchanting.

And while I'm on the subject of 'look and feel', one of the most striking features of He-Man: The Most Powerful Game in the Universe is its uncluttered UI.

You navigate your way through the levels by touching the left-hand corner of the screen and tapping and swiping on the right. Nope, there are no virtual D-pads, thumbsticks, or buttons here clogging up the screen.

Thus, a simple gesture in the lower-half of the screen is interpreted as an input and so He-Man will move, jump, and slash accordingly.

In addition to his signature sword, He-Man has an arsenal of special attacks at his disposal, including a tornado spin, flying uppercut, and flying groundstrike. You can purchase these with in-game gems and chain them together to create devastating combos.

The most impressive thing about He-Man: The Most Powerful Game in the Universe is that it runs without a trace of lag or skipping during the gameplay.

No matter how many enemies are on-screen or how many special attack animations He-Man executes, the game remains smooth and lag-free throughout.

In a few short weeks, you'll have the chance to hold your iPhone or iPad aloft; eviscerate Trap Jaw, Mer-Man, and Beast Man; and claim the power of Grayskull for your own.

While you're waiting, though, check out the trailer below. Go on.

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